The Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust board has three conservation projects that it can forward to the Wyoming Legislature for final evaluation.

The board meets Monday at the Parkway Plaza in Casper, to allocate state funds for conservation projects. The meeting begins at 8:30 a.m. and will continue through the day.

In this funding cycle, the board will consider 29 project applications from 15 counties and the Wind River Indian Reservation. This is the second selection period for the board, which has funded 30 projects to date.

By law, the Legislature has reserved final approval to itself and a select committee, for any conservation projects that would spend more than $200,000 of Wildlife Trust funds. In the current set of applications, there are three projects requesting more than $200,000, including:

· Bates Creek Watershed II in Natrona County. Working with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, the first phase called for mechanical harvest and prescribed fire to enhance and rejuvenate aspen and deciduous shrubs. The second phase asks for $420,000 from a total cost of $1,060,750.

· North Laramie Range II in Converse County. Working with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, the first phase called for removal of encroaching conifers and helps to re-establish aspen, grassland, and sagebrush habitats. The second phase calls for $450,000 from the trust on a project valued at $1,565,000.

· Lander Front Mule Deer Project in Fremont County. Working with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, this project would treat sagebrush and aspen for deer habitat improvements. The project needs $378,000 from the trust, for a total $479,700 project cost.

The only easement project on the list is the Hansen Easement in Fremont County. The trust is being asked for $100,000 in matching funds toward a $1.6 million easement sought by the Game & Fish Department.

All told, Game & Fish has nine project proposals, while the Bureau of Land Management has three, as does Bridger-Teton National Forest.

According to Board Chair Delaine Roberts of Etna, the projects and will have lasting impacts on the state's wildlife and natural resource heritage. Projects asking for money from the trust include programs to restore aspen habitats, control invasive species, maintain habitat and open space, restore streams, and implement large-scale watershed enhancements.

Project applications were submitted prior to September 30, and, which included on-site reviews, which are nearly complete.

Allocating money "will be difficult again," Roberts said. "We see these projects on paper and then out on the ground, and they're outstanding."

The board has slightly less than $1 million available, and more than twice the requests as last year.

"We really want to engage the Select Committee and the Legislature in this process," Roberts said. "The board is excited to fully implement the program as it was designed, and it looks like we will have a chance to complete that process this time around."

The Trust is now accepting project proposals for the next funding round, which will be closed March 31, 2007.

In other business, the board is expected to meet with the Wyoming chapter of The Nature Conservancy on a joint project called the Grassland Initiative, which is designed to conserve areas in the Shirley Basin and Thunder Basin areas.

The conservancy has agreed to contribute $250,000, to be matched with proceeds from the state's $40 million wildlife trust fund, to help farmers, ranchers and other landowners "continue their tradition of conserving the natural resources and habitats that are vital for lasting and productive agricultural yields."